Orbit Group Limited (202303607)
REPORT
COMPLAINT 202303607
Orbit Group Limited
26 September 2024
Our approach
The Housing Ombudsman’s approach to investigating and determining complaints is to decide what is fair in all the circumstances of the case. This is set out in the Housing Act 1996 and the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (the Scheme). The Ombudsman considers the evidence and looks to see if there has been any ‘maladministration’, for example whether the landlord has failed to keep to the law, followed proper procedure, followed good practice or behaved in a reasonable and competent manner.
Both the resident and the landlord have submitted information to the Ombudsman and this has been carefully considered. Their accounts of what has happened are summarised below. This report is not an exhaustive description of all the events that have occurred in relation to this case, but an outline of the key issues as a background to the investigation’s findings.
The complaint
- The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of upstairs floor repairs.
- The Ombudsman has also considered the landlord’s complaint handling.
Background
- The resident holds an assured tenancy with the landlord in a 3-bedroom house which she occupies with her children. The tenancy commenced on 22 June 2022.
- Between June 2022 and January 2023 the landlord raised several repair orders to fix and replace the resident’s upstairs flooring including the landing, stairs, and bedrooms. This was in response to reports from the resident that the floorboards were loose. On 1 February 2023 the resident raised a formal complaint with the landlord. She was concerned that she had not received confirmation of a scheduled appointment with its contractor for 20 February 2023. She also said that at a previous inspection on 31 January 2023 the contractor had told her that floorboards were ok, which she disputed. As a resolution, she wanted the floorboards repaired and compensation.
- On 1 March 2023 the landlord responded to the complaint at stage 1 of its complaints process. It upheld the complaint. In summary, it said:
- The initial repair request regarding the upstairs flooring was raised on 21 December 2022, attended to within time and further works were identified.
- It raised a further job on 11 January 2023 for the downstairs flooring which was attended to within time and found that all flooring would need replacing.
- On 23 January 2023 it raised a major works request, but the inspector failed to include the details of the upstairs flooring replacement.
- It had booked the upstairs and downstairs flooring works for 14 and 15 March 2023.
- It would offer a total of £175 compensation comprised of £55 for the delays, £50 for failed appointments and £70 for the upset and inconvenience caused.
- The same day the resident informed the landlord that she was unhappy with the amount of compensation offered and wanted at least £300. On 24 March 2023 the landlord issued its stage 2 final response. It broadly reiterated its stage 1 position and in addition, it said:
- It upheld the complaint due to the lack of communication while replacing the floorboards.
- On 14 March 2023 its contractors attended the property and fitted new vinyl flooring to the utility room and the bedroom was made safe until it could replace the floorboards.
- Between 15 and 17 March 2023 the floorboards were replaced in the remaining rooms. On 20 March 2023 the landing flooring was replaced.
- It had raised a 28-day repair following the resident’s report that the bedroom flooring had gone brittle.
- It would increase its offer of compensation to £245, comprised of £70 for administration error for works closed and raised incorrectly, £50 for failed appointments, £100 for distress and inconvenience caused and £25 for poor complaint handling regarding the lack of communication while investigating the stage 2 complaint.
- In the resident’s referral to this Service, she was unhappy with the lack of communication and delays in completing the flooring repairs. She added that the repair had not been done properly and the flooring was still loose. As a resolution, she wanted more support and underlay placed underneath the flooring.
Assessment and findings
The landlord’s handling of upstairs floor repairs
- The landlord does not dispute that there were failings in its handling of this matter. Where the landlord has admitted failings, the Ombudsman’s role is to consider whether the landlord resolved the resident’s complaint satisfactorily in the circumstances and offered appropriate redress. In considering this, the Service assesses whether the landlord’s actions were in line with the Ombudsman’s Dispute Resolution Principles: Be fair, put things right and learn from outcomes.
- The landlord’s records suggested that the resident reported issues with her upstairs floorboards being loose on at least 5 occasions between June 2022 and January 2023. While the landlord’s repair records indicated that it attended to each report within its 28-day routine repair policy timescales, it is unclear what repairs were carried out during these visits. In any case, the landlord’s repair logs stated on more than one occasion that it needed to replace the floorboards. Indeed, a repair log at the end of July 2022 stated that the ‘upstairs hallway flooring had been repaired a few times making the original chipboard weak’ and recommended that an order be raised to renew the upstairs hallway flooring. However, this work was not completed until March 2023. This was an unreasonable delay, and the landlord should have acted to replace the flooring much sooner. Its failure to do so would have caused distress and inconvenience to the resident who would have likely felt unsafe.
- The landlord’s stage 1 response stated that the initial repair request regarding the resident’s upstairs flooring was raised on 21 December 2022, however, its repairs records showed that the landlord had raised several repair inspections for the upstairs flooring before this, and as early as 24 June 2022. It is therefore unclear why it took the landlord around 6 months to raise this ‘initial’ request. Moreover, while it was appropriate given the scope of the work for the landlord to raise the replacement of the flooring as a major repair it is unclear why it did not identify this as a major repair sooner. This would have caused further distress and inconvenience to the resident who would have likely felt the landlord had not properly addressed the issue. Furthermore, when the landlord raised the major works order it failed to include the upstairs flooring in its request. While the landlord acknowledged this error in its formal responses, this would have further delayed resolving matters for the resident.
- In February 2023 the landlord’s records confirmed that the resident’s young child had injured themselves ‘breaking through’ the floorboards. In addition, it stated that when its contractor attended the property on 6 February 2023 their foot went through a floorboard. In view of this, it is reasonable to conclude that the upstairs flooring was unsafe. Indeed, the landlord’s internal emails acknowledged that it sounded like there was a serious health and safety risk. Yet, it did not appear to carry out a risk assessment in this case nor did it adequately consider her request for a decant given her understandable safety concerns. This would have caused distress and inconvenience to the resident who was concerned for the safety of her children.
- In the resident’s referral to this Service, she said she was unhappy with the lack of communication from the landlord. It is not entirely clear what communication took place between the resident and the landlord during the period of the complaint, which likely indicates issues with the landlord’s record keeping and a recommendation is made below. Nevertheless, the landlord’s final response partly upheld the complaint based on its lack of communication about the flooring replacement. Additionally, the landlord did not appear to keep the resident informed of its intentions or updated on when the replacement work would take place.
- While the landlord apologised for some of these failings and offered compensation to put things right, it is the Ombudsman’s view that this did not go far enough for the failures identified in this report. This amounts to maladministration. The Service remedies guidance suggests award from £100 should be considered where there has been adverse effect, and the offer of compensation was not proportionate for the failings identified. In view of this, an order of compensation is made below for remedy.
- The Ombudsman notes that the resident raised further concerns regarding the upstairs flooring after the landlord’s stage 2 final response. The resident reported there was no support under the floorboards in her daughter’s bedroom and the flooring was brittle and coming away. Further, she reported that the landing floorboard was ‘soft’. While this Service cannot meaningfully assess these matters as they have not gone through the landlord’s complaints process, these reports appeared to have been attended to by the landlord. In any case, the resident continued to report problems with her upstairs flooring between April 2023 and September 2023 and informed this Service in January 2024 that the flooring was still loose. In light of this, a recommendation is made below.
Complaint handling
- It took the landlord a month to respond to the resident’s formal complaint. This was contrary to its 10-working day stage 1 policy timescale and there was no evidence that the landlord informed the resident of any delay in its response. This was a failing on the landlord’s part that would have caused distress and inconvenience to the resident who would have likely felt the landlord was ignoring her concerns.
- While the landlord’s final response offered £25 compensation for its poor complaint handling at stage 2 it did not acknowledge or apologise for the delays at stage 1, nor did it identify any learning from the complaint. This amounts to service failure and an order of compensation is made below in line with this Service’s guidance which suggests awards of up £100 should be considered where there has been a minor failing from the landlord which it did not appropriately acknowledge.
- The Ombudsman notes that on 24 April 2023, after the landlord’s stage 2 final response, the resident told the landlord that it had not resolved her complaint. She felt that not all the work had been done and it had not kept her updated. It is unclear if the landlord raised a new complaint in response to her concerns or whether the issues with the flooring were resolved to the resident’s satisfaction. As such a recommendation is made below.
Determination
- In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration by the landlord in respect of its handling of upstairs floor repairs.
- In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was service failure by the landlord in respect of its complaint handling.
Orders
- The landlord must do the following within the next 4 weeks:
- Provide a written apology for the failures identified in this report.
- Pay the resident compensation of £495 comprised of:
- £245 as offered in its final response if it has not already done so.
- A further £200 for the distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s handling of upstairs floor repairs.
- A further £50 for the distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s complaint handling.
- The landlord should provide this Service with evidence of compliance with these orders within the timescale set out above.
Recommendations
- The landlord should review the Ombudsman’s Spotlight report of Knowledge and Information Management (available at: KIM-report-v2-100523.pdf (housing-ombudsman.org.uk).
- The landlord should consider instructing an independent specialist to inspect the upstairs flooring to ensure it is safe and fit for purpose. If any repairs are identified these should be carried out within the landlord’s policy timescales.
- The landlord should consider raising a new complaint if the resident remains unhappy with the landlord’s handling of this matter.